Program puts Navy personnel to work in trauma unit

Published: Friday, June 27, 2014 3:00 a.m. CST

CHICAGO (AP) — Navy medical personnel will work in a Chicago-area trauma and burn unit as part of a new training program to help the military doctors, nurses and corpsmen prepare for combat situations.

The Cook County Health and Hospitals System and the Lovell Federal Health Care Center announced the initiative on Thursday.

The program is called the Cook County Trauma Experience. It places the Navy personnel alongside Cook County trauma surgeons and nurses as they treat patients at Chicago's John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital.

The commanding officer of the federal center is Captain Jose Acosta. He says the hands-on trauma training will help sailors cope with the kind of high-pressured environments they'll experience during real battles.